Apples of Gold
Radio Script for April 18, 2008
“Are You Desperately Praying for Someone?”
Hello, I’m Doug Apple…with Apples of Gold.
So you are praying for someone.
You really want God to answer your prayers because, man, they really need it.
Now I’m going to challenge you. How much do you love them? How bad do you want God to work in their life?
If you want it bad enough, you will be willing to do whatever it takes to make your prayers more effective.
So what is the number one way to make your prayers more effective?
I think it is this. Get rid of the sin in your life. Stamp out sin, and be more righteous.
You won’t read this in an advice column. You won’t see it on Oprah. But bro, the sin has got to go.
James 5:16 says, “The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.”
Don’t you want your prayers to be powerful and effective? Who doesn’t? But there is a price to be paid, and that is to get rid of sin and be more righteous.
Do you love that person you are praying for? Do you want your prayers to be answered? Then become a righteous man or woman of God.
Proverbs 15:29 says the Lord hears…whose prayer? “The prayer of the righteous.”
First Peter 3:12 says the Lord’s ears are attentive to whose prayer? The prayer of the righteous.
So the number one key to making your prayers more effective is to be righteous.
Now here is the number two key. Believe.
Jesus made it clear that when we pray, we should believe that it will happen. Matthew 21:22 and Mark 11:24 both say it. If we believe, we will receive.
If not, James 1:7 says we shouldn’t expect to receive anything from the Lord. So when we pray, it is important that we believe what we are praying.
“But Doug, what if my faith is weak, and I’m not sure if I believe?”
Then pray the Word of God. You know that’s true. You know you can believe the Word, so when you pray for someone, pray right out of the Bible.
For example, Jesus said in John 6:44, “No one can come to me unless the Father…draws him…” So this is a prayer I pray often for people – and I believe it when I pray – “Lord, draw this person to You.” I pray it, and I believe it.
Now here is a third key to making your prayers more effective. Pray, and keep on praying.
In Luke 18 is Jesus’ parable of the persistent widow. The point of the parable? That we should “always pray and not give up.”
In our 8:08 prayer time, there are certain people we pray for every single day. We will pray, and we won’t give up, just like Jesus said.
Why does God make us keep on praying for something? I don’t know. But He said do it, and that’s good enough for me. Just keep on praying and don’t give up.
The clear theme in Scripture is that we should be people of prayer. I love what David wrote in Psalm 109: “I am a man of prayer.”
Various verses say we are to be faithful in prayer and devoted to prayer. We are to pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers. Philippians 4:6 indicates that we are to pray about everything. First Thessalonians says to “pray without ceasing.”
So there you have three keys to make your prayers more effective:
Get rid of sin in your life and be more righteous.
Believe what you are praying for, and
Be persistent in your prayers
Now here are some bonus prayer points.
Acts 1:14 says, “They all joined together constantly in prayer…” This is a hallmark of strong Christians. They get together and pray.
The Bible doesn’t require a certain posture for prayer, but several times it points out that people got down on their knees to pray. Acts 21 even describes a time when they knelt down out on the beach to pray. Like I said, it’s not required, but some mighty strong Christians did it. Paul wrote in Ephesians 3:14, “…I kneel before the Father…”
Almost no one does this next point in the American church, and maybe they write it off as cultural or something, but you know what? If I had someone I was desperate to reach the Lord for in prayer, I would just do it.
First Corinthians 11 says, “Every man who prays…with his head covered dishonors his head. And every woman who prays…with her head uncovered dishonors her head…” Verse 13 says, “Judge for yourselves: Is it proper for a woman to pray to God with her head uncovered?”
“Oh, Doug, come on!”
Look. I don’t know. I’m just saying, if I was desperate to get a hold of God for someone, I would cover this base.*
And if that sounds like it’s picking on the gals, then here is one for the guys. First Timothy 2:8 says, “I want men everywhere to lift up holy hands in prayer…”
So, anyway, the point is, if you love someone and are praying for them, do what you can to make your prayers more effective, and that means:
Get rid of sin in your life and be more righteous.
Believe what you are praying for, and
Be persistent in your prayers
Comments?
E-mail me: dougapple@wave94.com.
May God bless you today! With Apples of Gold…I’m Doug Apple.
* One additional thought on this subject. It is interesting that men already do this. Most men, when it comes time to pray, will take off their hat. Why? Out of reverence for the Lord. Even men who never darken the door of a church will take off their hat during a prayer. But in America today, a woman who covered her head during prayer would, at best, be looked at sort of strangely. Why have the men retained this pattern but not the women? I haven’t studied this at all, but it is a curiosity.
Now if you are looking for a verse that targets the men, look at First Peter 3:7, “Husbands, in the same way be considerate as you live with your wives, and treat them with respect as the weaker partner and as heirs with you of the gracious gift of life, so that nothing will hinder your prayers.”
According to that verse, how a husband treats his wife directly influences the effectiveness of his prayers.
© 2008 The Arrow’s Tip
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(Proverbs 25:11 – “A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver.”)
Why “The Arrow’s Tip”? Each morning, after diligently seeking the Lord, I write Apples of Gold. Then before I release it to the public I pray one final prayer, “Lord, send forth your arrows.” I envision Apples of Gold as arrows, tips dipped in the river of the water of life that flows from the throne of God (Rev. 22:1), sailing toward the hearts and minds of men and women around the world.
Doug Apple
General Manager - Wave 94
Christian Radio for Tallahassee
PO Box 4105
Tallahassee, FL 32315
(850) 926-8000
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